Professor Layton and the Evanescing Ballad
by ThinkingCAPSLOCK
Summary: There's always something that can rip the soul out of your every waking moment - and for Professor Layton, that something was missing Luke. SONGFIC


AN: This is one of my fave songs ever, and I really think it relates back to Professor Layton. Of course I don't own the song or the characters!

BTW this is set in the future with Legal! and its so sad! You've been warned!

It was just another day at University. It was just another stack of papers. Professor Layton let out a sigh, gazing out the window. Luke had grown up so much, and was now off studying abroad in France. A true gentleman never went to France of all places.

_How can you see into my eyes like open doors_

Luke had always known what was going on in the Professor's life - half because the boy lived with him, and half because the two of them had some form of deeper connection. Layton stirred his tea absentmindedly, missing how it only took one look from the boy for him to want to reveal all of his feelings.

_Leading you down into my core where I've become so numb _

_Without a soul my spirit sleeping somewhere cold _

_Until you find it there and lead it back home_

Now it seemed like there was a half of him missing without the younger boy. No, Luke was certainly a man by now. But still, there was an ache in his chest that no amount of tea or puzzles seemed to be able to feel. True gentlemen weren't supposed to miss their apprentices this much, but Layton couldn't seem to help it.

Many people had asked him if there was anything happening, which of course the Professor denied. Slowly, though, he found himself becoming less and less interested in the normalities of teaching students who did not even appreciate a good puzzle. It was if a block of ice had frozen over in his soul where the smile of his young apprentice used to live.There was nothing he longed for more than Luke to come back and solve a good puzzle with him.

_(Wake me up)  
Wake me up inside  
(I can't wake up)  
Wake me up inside  
(Save me)  
Call my name and save me from the dark_

Letters weren't enough. It was a small comfort to read the words that Luke had written to him, but it just wasn't the same. Phoning cost a bit much for a university student to afford, although Layton longed for nothing more than to hear that voice call him Professor once more and snap him out of this forlorn mindset.

_(Wake me up)  
Bid my blood to run  
(I can't wake up)  
Before I come undone  
(Save me)  
Save me from the nothing I've become  
_

Indeed, it was almost as if the Professor could feel his age catching up with him. As the day past he left more and more weary. He was growing older; soon he wondered if he would be in any state to go on another adventure. Oh, how he longed for another grand puzzle such as St Mystere or Folsense. Something that would make him feel alive again.

_Now that I know what I'm without, you can't just leave me  
Breathe into me and make me real  
Bring me to life_

The phone rang, a depressing requiem of darkened souls. Halfheartedly, the Professor lifted the receiver to his mouth.

"Professor Hershel Layton speaking."

"Professor, it's me, Luke!"

The Professor's heart skipped a beat, and for the first time in four months he felt _something_. "Luke? Is that really you? It's been so long, I-"

"I can't talk long Professor, but I just heard a really good puzzle. I'll get back to you later!"

For a brief moment, Layton had felt that spark of life that Luke always brought out of him. The dial tone on the phone chipped away at his being, as he gazed wistfully at the story about baseball he now kept permanently on his desk.

_(Wake me up)  
Wake me up inside  
(I can't wake up)  
Wake me up inside  
(Save me)  
Call my name and save me from the dark_

His eyes seemed even more soulless than usual as he looked into the mirror. Indeed, the Professor was slowly becoming less and less attached to reality. He heard his colleagues at the University talk about it - Hershel Layton seemed like he was the walking dead. Something had changed but no one quite was sure what.

_(Wake me up)  
Bid my blood to run  
(I can't wake up)  
Before I come undone  
(Save me)  
Save me from the nothing I've become_

_Bring me to life  
(I've been living a lie, there's nothing inside)  
Bring me to life_

How he longed for his younger companion. How he longed to feel alive again.__

Frozen inside without your touch without your love darling 

_Only you are the life among the dead_

The phone calls were too spaced out and too short. It was the only time anymore that the Professor felt _anything_. Luke was the only light in his life, the only spark that would melt the deepest parts of his soul. Tea couldn't warm him, puzzles couldn't delight him, his work was slowly killing him. The only reason to continue was to wait for the summer - for Luke's return.__

All this time I can't believe I couldn't see  
Kept in the dark but you were there in front of me  
I've been sleeping a thousand years it seems  
Got to open my eyes to everything

Finally, summer had arrived. Layton paced the airport, a dull look in his soulless eyes. It had felt like they had been so far, despite the calls, despite the letters, despite the pictures and conversations online. The Professor was only a shell of who he had been before.

"Professor!"

_Without a thought without a voice without a soul  
Don't let me die here  
There must be something more  
Bring me to life_

Professor Layton spun around, a small smile crossing his face as his young apprentice ran towards him across the crowded airport. There was something about Luke that always seemed to bring him back to life.


End file.
